A small computer lab in Agronomy Hall is the home of a new idea in global warming and its local effects.

“If you’re concerned with global warming, what you want to know is the local [effects],” said William Gutowski, an associate agronomy professor.

Ray Arritt, an associate agronomy professor, said projects have been done in the past on global models, but there has not been a similar one for local areas.

“[It seemed like a] logical extension — starting with the broad picture and narrowing down,” Arritt said.

According to a recent press release, the International Institute of Theoretical and Applied Physics was formed as a project between Iowa State and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to promote world peace by sharing scientific research and advances.

“This project relies on a network of teams of scientists around the world working with the common purpose of advancing the science of climate prediction,” James Vary, director of IITAP, said in a press release.

Vary said collaborative research projects combine new technologies of developed countries with the local environment expertise of other developing countries.

“The main project is coordinating a number of simulations by groups in several different countries,” Gutowski said.

Some of the countries included in this coordination are Denmark, England, Canada, Germany and Australia, he said.

The information is collected through the Internet and occasional meetings.

“The broader the community of scientists, the more confidence we can have that we are doing things right,” Gutowski said.

A number of different models are used in the simulations, Arritt said.

“If they all say the same thing, you’re more likely to believe them,” Gutowski said. “An additional step will be doing observations in the area we are simulating.”

Gutowski said ISU’s research has focused on the central United States because it has a good database, and a project like this is important for economic impact and changes in agriculture.

Since agriculture is important in the Midwest, it’s also important to know how the weather will affect the area, he said.

“We don’t know what the future climate is going to be,” Gutowski said. “Simulations looking back give more confidence than looking forward.”

Eugene Takle, a professor in agronomy and atmospheric sciences, said they are using regional models in their tests because they have higher resolution than global models.

“We want to refine regional models and make them more reliable for projecting future climate,” Takle said in a press release.

Those who have contributed to the project include Doug Fils, systems support specialist for physics and astronomy and Zaitao Pan, resident associate for geologic and atmospheric sciences.

Electric Power Research Institute is also a major sponsor of the research.

More information on the project is available on the Internet at www.pircs.iastate.edu.